East Palo Alto city council candidates answer questions during a forum at the Faith Missionary Baptist Church on Oct. 29. (Rachel Estabrook/Peninsula Press)

As election officials continue to count mail-in and provisional ballots, a tight contest has emerged in the East Palo Alto City Council election. Based on incomplete results from the city’s eight precincts, the three leading candidates are Mayor Laura Martinez, Larry Moody and Lisa Yarbrough-Gauthier.

Only 216 votes separate the top five candidates, however, making the count of the remaining ballots crucial. As of Wednesday afternoon, San Mateo County election officials did not provide a timetable for when all the votes would be counted.

At stake is whether a Latino majority on the five-member council, first achieved in 2008, will continue in the heavily Latino city. Three of the seven candidates are Latino, including incumbent Martinez. Continue Reading >>